Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Jules Chéret Museum of Fine Arts is housed in a villa built in Nice between 1875 and 1883, originally commissioned by the Russian prince Léon Kochubey and his wife Elizabeth. Inspired by genoese and michelangelesque models, this Renaissance-inspired Italian home reflects architectural tastes in vogue among the European aristocracy of the time. The princess, tired of building delays, sold the unfinished villa in 1883 to American entomologist James Livingston Thompson, who finished the project with the architect of Nice Constantin Scala. After Thompson's death in 1897, the villa changed hands several times before being acquired by the city of Nice in 1925 to install its Museum of Fine Arts.

The museum opened in 1928 as Palais des Arts, Jules Chéret Museum, in tribute to the famous Niçois posterist. Its collections, built in 1860 from a state deposit after annexation from Nice County to France, are enriched by major donations from private collectors such as Felix Ziem, Marie Bashkirtseff, and Raoul Dufy. The villa, classified as a historical monument in 2023 for its genoese manerist facades and roofs, offers a chronological route: the ground floor exhibits works of primitive regionals in the 18th century (Van Loo, Fragonard), while the floor features academic, impressionist and fawn paintings (Monet, Bonnard, Rodin).

The history of the museum is also marked by exceptional legacies, such as those of Aline Avigdor or of Ethel Messiah, as well as emblematic works such as the Self-portrait of Louise Catherine Breslau, bequeathed by her companion Madeleine Zillhardt. Since 2023, a partnership with the Musée d'Orsay has strengthened its scientific dimension and national visibility. The villa itself, with its Belle Époque patio and monumental staircase, illustrates the mixture of artistic and cultural influences that shaped Nice in the late 19th century.

Before becoming a museum, the Thompson villa (or Les Baumettes) embodies the attraction of the French Riviera for European, Russian and American elites. Its architecture, classified in 1976 and then in 2023, bears witness to this fascist period when Nice became a popular destination, mixing Italian heritage, Slavic influences and French modernity. The collections, on the other hand, reflect this diversity, with works ranging from ancient masters to the avant-gardes of the early twentieth century, making the museum a key place to understand artistic evolution in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur.

Collection

Le musée doit sa collection à une succession de donations de collectionneurs privés : Félix Ziem, Fanny Trachel, Marie Bashkirtseff-mère, le baron Joseph Vitta, Madame Dufy, Maurice Fenaille, la famille Mossa, et plus récemment par les legs d'Aline Avigdor et d'Ethel Messiah, et par les amis de Michel de Tarnowsky.

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